[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 148 (Monday, December 8, 2014)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1751]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          HONORING TRAVIS WOOD

                                 ______
                                 

                      HON. MICHELLE LUJAN GRISHAM

                             of new mexico

                    in the house of representatives

                        Monday, December 8, 2014

  Ms. MICHELLE LUJAN GRISHAM of New Mexico. Mr. Speaker, I rise today 
to honor the life of Travis Wood, a devoted husband, loving father and 
proud New Mexican.
  While born a Texan, Travis was raised as a New Mexican. In 1912, 
Travis was born near the small town of Wellington, Texas; three short 
years later, his family traveled to New Mexico, where he would devote a 
lifetime of service to a community he loved dearly.
  Travis was a man of great integrity. He grew up enduring the 
extremely difficult hand-to-mouth existence as a member of a homestead 
family. Along with the hard times, however, came many lessons that 
would serve him throughout his life. At the onset of World War II, 
Travis enlisted in the United States Navy as a motor machinist first 
class on the Navy sub-chaser SC 1354, often referred to as the 
``Splinter Fleet''. The Splinter Fleet was detailed to Omaha Beach on 
D-Day and Travis would later be awarded the bronze star for his courage 
and valor.
  In 1952, following the war, Travis and his wife Clara moved the 
family to Roy, New Mexico, where Travis accepted a job as a rural 
letter carrier. Anyone who knew Travis will tell you that his 
commitment to his country and the State of New Mexico was unwavering. 
He became an icon in his community as a tireless public figure, serving 
several terms as Mayor of the Village of Roy, on the Roy School Board, 
the ENMR Tele-communications Board and the Eastern Plains Council of 
Governments (COG). In addition, he was an avid member in the Roy Lions 
Club, the American Legion, the Roy and Springer Masonic Lodges, and a 
board member of St. Paul's Methodist Church/United Church of Roy.
  Travis was always searching for ways to stimulate the economy in his 
cherished community. For his lasting and effective contributions, his 
fellow citizens honored his name with the Travis Wood Senior Center. 
But Travis's most treasured triumph was a private one: building a 
family. He passionately loved his son Gary Wood, daughter Cheryl Wood 
Scott, and his grandchildren and great grandchildren.
  Gentle, patient, compassionate, loving and selfless--Travis was a 
helper to many and a friend to all. Travis demonstrates the impact that 
one individual can have on an entire community and his warmth was felt 
by all those who knew him. Today, Travis is not with us, but his legacy 
and lessons will endure in all those he touched. May the memory of 
Travis live on in our hearts.

                          ____________________